CHAPTER 4:AXEL STEELE

Chapter 4

Alethea's POV

Nine hours later, I was standing in the Luxe Majestic Manor, the most expensive hotel in the whole of New York City and surrounding areas and it was all thanks to Elaine and some weird gay dude she recently befriended, his name was John.

I felt out of place standing in the midst of these wealthy socialites. And it wasn't because I was dressed out of place. Elaine had put in her best shot at dressing me up as soon as she heard my plan to get back at my ex fiance.

She dressed me in a stunning red gown that complemented my silver blonde hair and purple eyes. The dress hugged my soft athletic curves, and it had a heart-shaped neckline, and a flowing train that made me stand out. It was made of luxurious silk, and it had a beautiful silver embroidery making it stand out. I wore a chandelier shaped silver and purple earrings to accentuate my eyes and hair, then paired with a silver clutch, and high red heels that just seemed to complete the look.

Of course, all eyes were on me which was initially unearthing, but after a while, I felt comfortable amidst the stares and became even more confident to be able to catch the sight of the high and mighty billionaire son, Axel Steele.

Elaine stood next to me absentmindedly texting on her phone. She was dressed in a blue midnight strapless gown and it just hugged all her curves perfectly. The luxurious silky soft fabric was paired with a silver purse. Her hair was styled in loose waves, and she barely wore any makeup save from a neutral colored smear lip gloss on her lips and mascara that made her eyes pop.

As a result of her confident poise, yet straight face, she was deemed absolutely unapproachable by every young bachelor at the party.

“Okay we're cleared, now let's go rock this party,” I heard John whisper close to her ear and immediately she turned off her phone and slipped into her purse, turning to me with a smile.

“What do you say, why don't we go mingle? Let me introduce you to some people,” she said, taking my hand, not waiting for my reply as she pulled me towards a certain direction, John following behind.

She led me through the crowds, exchanging pleasantries with a lot of guests, with Elaine skillfully steering the conversations.

Of course, she wasn't new to all of these. I never really valued her friendship before now because we belonged to different class but now it seemed like I wouldn't achieve all of this without her.

We were just about to approach another group of laughing attendees, when a woman surrounded by 1…2… 6 other young girls waltzed into our space, her smile seemed too buttery and sweet.

“Now that's a smile just as fake as the diamonds on your neck,” Astrid growled sarcastically.

“Elaine, darling! How lovely to see you.” The lady said, stretching her hands open to hug Elaine. I caught Elaine's scowl which went unnoticed by Victoria because of the speed by which she reciprocated Victoria's smile with one of her own, showing off her pearly white teeth.

“And who is your beautiful friend?” The lady asked, looking me over, a distant look of disdain on her face.

Elaine's smile brightened at this moment as she held the small of my arms, her voice stable but I detected a hint of elation. “Oh I'm sorry Victoria, this is Alethea. Alethea, this is Victoria, she's just an a- acquaintance.”

Astrid growled softly in my mind, sensing the tension between Victoria and Elaine. "This is going to be fun," she said, literally adjusting her posture.

Victoria's eyes narrowed slightly at Elaine's introduction as well as hesitation, before directing her gaze back to me. “An acquaintance, how… interesting,” she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. “Aren't we more than that?” She asked, her eyes still fixed on me but I knew she was talking to Elaine.

“Well, Alethea, you certainly stand out in this crowd. That dress is...eye-catching.” Her gaze flickered to Elaine but only for a moment, an invisible ring staged for them. It was obvious they were more than acquaintances.

“Well, fake Victoria scored a point against bitchiness. That's ninety nine left.” Astrid commented scornfully but I ignored her.

“Elaine, you always seem to find the most fascinating friends.” She said, smiling sweetly, her eyes locked on mine.

“True, Elaine has a knack for finding very unique gems.” I said, watching Victoria's eyes grow slightly. Bet she wasn't expecting me to say a word… well my bad.

Victoria's smile never flinched, but her eyes flashed with annoyance. “Well, I'm sure we'll have plenty of time to get to know each other better. Elaine, darling, I must introduce you to my own friends.” she said, her eyes finally leaving mine to look at Elaine.

Elaine's grip on my arm tightened, a smile plastered on her face. “Actually, we have something to do, I won't like to delay you by making you wait, we might catch up later.”

As we walked away, I whispered to Elaine, “Who is that?”

Elaine's voice was low and conspiratorial. “Victoria Vale, she's an elite model, one of the sought after in the industry. And trust me, you don't want to get on her bad side. She's the human definition of bitchy.”

Wow!

Elaine quickly grabbed two glasses of wine and from a waiter passing by and handed one to me. And just at that time, a scent hit me. That scent was way too familiar like I knew it before.

And yes I did because two minutes later, the man who had paid for elites to come together, the one who I had set all my heart to get stepped into the room… and the man who I had run into a few days back.

“Him?” I whisper yelled, prompting Elaine, who had previously had her back turned towards the direction in which Axel came from, turned to stare at me immediately.

“You've met him before?” She asked, still sipping slowly from her cup.

I nodded, my eyes fixed on Axel as he scanned the room with an air of confidence. Elaine's eyes followed mine, her expression curious as she watched him closely.

“I didn't think the wealthiest billionaire in this city was a young man of 25, 6 or maybe 27. Point is, he's hot and I'm gushing.” Elaine commented, waving her free hand up in the air.

Just then, a voice cut through my thoughts on how to approach him, “Well, well, well. Look what we have here.” Victoria's voice cut through our conversation, her tone sugary sweet. “Axel, darling! How lovely to see you.”

“The b***h!” Astrid growled again, she was getting angry.

I watched as she sashayed towards him, her curves swaying so beautifully I just had to comment in my head. But the shock I got only got worse when she wrapped her arms around his neck, her red lips planting a kiss on his cheek. Axel's smile was polite as he stared at her, but his eyes seemed distant, uninterested or maybe that was me, trying to deny.

I felt a pang of disappointment, wondering if they were a couple. Victoria's voice pulled me back to reality. “Axel, sweetheart, I've missed you so much. We need to catch up.” Her hand clung to his arm, her gaze adoring.

“Are they in a relationship?” I whispered to Elaine but she just shook her head confusedly.

I watched in disbelief as she basically grabbed his attention to herself, my mind still reeling with confusion. Why was she acting like they were a couple?

Elaine's whisper broke my trance as she nudged me at the small of my side, “Looks like Victoria's got her claws in him tight.”

I nodded not able to respond, my eyes fixed on the scene before me.

“Can you point me in tears direction of the balcony, I need some fresh air.” Elaine pointed towards a direction and I quickly left her side, making my way to the balcony, hoping to clear my head and mourn the death of my plan.

I couldn't steal another woman's man and certainly not a woman like Victoria. For Elaine to warn me against her, she certainly wasn't one to mess with.

The cool breeze hit me akin to a slap in the face, snapping me out of my daze. I just stood there, lost in my own thought, when I overheard raised voices from somewhere close by.

“Oh goodness! How do you never get the fact that we are done, Victoria? Stop being a pest and quit trying to make people think we're still a couple. Leave Me Be.” Axel's voice was firm, his tone final as he enunciated each word.

“But you can't just dismiss me like that, Axel. I won't let you. I still love you. We can work things out please.” Victoria's voice was sombre in a pleading tone.

At this point, I realized they weren't a couple, and my heart skipped a beat. Not out of love but I had finally been given an opportunity to execute my plan, a smile formed on its own on my face.

After a while, with Axel finally forcefully dismissing her, I suddenly heard footsteps echoing towards the veranda. I recognize the heavy footsteps and I knew he was the one.

I turned towards the direction he would come from and when he finally appeared, he merely gave me a glance and walked towards the edge, his hand tightly grippi

ng the barricade.

He was very angry. I watched him for a while before making my move.

“Hi,”